he first time Joni Mitchell heard her voice in Dolby Atmos, she was thrilled by the way it sounded. “I can’t believe how good it sounds!” she said in June 2022 while listening to a playback of her classic Court And Spark album. That same Dolby Atmos experience can now be enjoyed through mobile phones and tablets, ensuring classic albums are available in unprecedented audio quality for those on the move using any brand of headphones or earbuds. A technology that was initially designed for the most cutting-edge cinemas in 2012, can now be enjoyed through a device that fits in your pocket, bringing studio-quality sound direct to your ears.
Dolby Atmos technology allows any single sound to be manipulated and moved around within an overall sonic landscape. For film, TV and games, this means the sound of a helicopter can appear to come from overheard or the noise of a car horn or gunfire can be moved around during the scene to create a wholly immersive experience. Dialogue might start behind you and then move to the front as a scene unfolds. Now imagine the potential of this when applied to music. A Dolby Atmos remix gives the artist, producer and mixer unprecedented control over individual aspects of any song, allowing them to overlay and manoeuvre constituent parts to create an astonishing, all-encompassing musical experience. No wonder it has been embraced with passion by bands like The Beatles, Kraftwerk and Pink Floyd, who have relished the opportunity to reimagine their classic albums in a new sonic environment.
Recreating immersive sound on a mobile device was a huge technical challenge. Dolby’s engineers needed to take a completely new approach to sound. Cinemas and home entertainment systems can be hugely complex, but headphones and built-in speakers generally are far simpler which means there can be problems of leakage and cross-talk. To get the same audio experience, Dolby had to imitate the way sounds from different places arrive at our ears at different times and from different places, placing the listener at the centre of a bubble of sound.
Now an album or film that’s played on any device enabled with Dolby Atmos over headphones or earbuds, can accurately simulate a three-dimensional audio experience. Even better, this can be done through a device’s built-in speakers thanks to some nifty additional processing that eliminates the issue of leakage or crosstalk. The tech supports newer mobile devices that have four speakers, and it provides a richer and more expansive sound.
What does this mean for the listener? It means astonishing clarity and detail in the listening experience, a punchier sound that delivers the richness of a high-end hi-fi or home entertainment system from a mobile or tablet. Whether walking, jogging or travelling by train or plane, enjoyment is enhanced through the breathtaking precision of sound.
It works for music, as well as dialogue when watching TV and films and in every situation, the overall audio experience is unforgettably enhanced. Play a favourite album, and you will hear something new. On quieter songs, there is no off-putting distortion or rattle and the listener can really immerse themselves in the intricacy of the musical atmosphere; when it comes to heavier rock, the sound is direct and earth-shakingly intense.
Dolby Atmos can be experienced on a range of iOS and Android devices, as well as through Windows 10 and Windows 11 via Microsoft. Visit Dolby.com to find out how you can experience entertainment in Dolby.
